Duane Adolph
March 3, 2008, 07:35 PM
Hi Dien,
Thanks for the movie list. "Salesman" sounds particularly interesting. I will have to add these to my "already loooong list" :->
I'm begin to see more and more of this "emotional transference" everywhere I go, in personal and business situations.
Other than the movie "Boiler Room" I cannot recall other specific sales type movies that I found interesting.
That said, since in a previous post you mentioned that YOU were currently studying STRATEGY.
One of my favorite movies (besides The Matrix...Part One of course) is THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. I think anybody that enjoys Strategy will find this movie inspirational, and yet it has nothing to do with business.
I was going to post a link to wikipedia, but MY GOODNESS THEY TELL YOU the entire Movie Plot...TWISTS and all.
So if you have not seen it. Just go and rent it. DO NOT look it up online. It will just kill it.
Now there was another movie, that I really enjoyed but I for the life of me I cannot remember the name. It had a couple of lines which particularly stuck out in my mind
" The best trick the Devil ever played was to convince the world that he didn't exist" and
"Who is Kaiser Sosay"???
What movie was this??
Well my friends were bugging me for years to see it, because they said "I" would enjoy it...AND They were correct.
Especially because It did NOT have a predictable ending for me.
Hmmm ...."Who is Kaiser Sosay"???
Actually I think one of the guys (Kevin Spacey?) in Glenngary Glenn Ross is in the movie I'm thinking of ...
Hi Duane!
For me, Glengarry Glen Ross (http://imdb.com/title/tt0104348/) is a bit of a "guilty pleasure"... I like the movie...!
However, it does show a "sleazy" side of sales... Without really showing the corresponding "good" side of it... The dialogue is pretty powerful stuff though!
If you want some riveting viewing, get or borrow the documentary "Salesman". Some people believe that "Salesman" was a big inspiration for "Glengarry Glen Ross".
"Salesman (http://imdb.com/title/tt0064921/)" is about door-to-door Bible salesmen in the late 1960s. The camera follows four salesmen as they sell these expensive Bibles to Catholic families in Boston and Miami.
You can really see the differences between those who sell, and those who don't.
The "main character" of the documentary is Paul, nicknamed "The Badger". His sales aren't doing too well nowadays (reminiscent of Jack Lemmon's character in "Glengarry Glen Ross").
But the guy to watch for as a good salesman I believe is James, nicknamed "The Rabbit". Why?
You can see the enthusiasm he has when he talks about these intricate, expensive Bibles, the craftsmanship that went into making them, and so on. He's a great illustration of what Zig Ziglar teaches, that sales is at its core "emotional transference". James is emotional about the product, and as a result, he makes sales.
Anyway, I highly recommend it. Although the documentary mainly focuses on Paul "The Badger", make sure you pay attention to James "The Rabbit"! And notice how the two are quite different - and have different levels of success in sales as a result!
Other interesting sales-related movies (from Gordon's earlier recommendations)...
Elmer Gantry (http://imdb.com/title/tt0053793/). Burt Lancaster, playing Elmer Gantry, is a master "salesman", and pretty charismatic to boot.
The Music Man (http://imdb.com/title/tt0056262/). Another great salesman played by Robert Preson, who's a traveling salesman, selling musical instruments. In the end (despite himself), he does good for the community - showing the positive power that sales can really have. If you don't believe that sales can do good, then watch this movie.
And on another note...
Another one of my favorite movies is The Sweet Smell of Success (http://imdb.com/title/tt0051036/). It's not really about sales - it's actually about the working relation between a publicity man and a columnist - so it's still relevant to business. People often like Glengarry Glen Ross for the dialogue, but I think the dialogue in The Sweet Smell of Success is the best I've ever heard in film! I find it riveting... :)
There are a whole bunch of other "sales-related" films I haven't seen yet... Any other recommendations?
- Dien
Thanks for the movie list. "Salesman" sounds particularly interesting. I will have to add these to my "already loooong list" :->
I'm begin to see more and more of this "emotional transference" everywhere I go, in personal and business situations.
Other than the movie "Boiler Room" I cannot recall other specific sales type movies that I found interesting.
That said, since in a previous post you mentioned that YOU were currently studying STRATEGY.
One of my favorite movies (besides The Matrix...Part One of course) is THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. I think anybody that enjoys Strategy will find this movie inspirational, and yet it has nothing to do with business.
I was going to post a link to wikipedia, but MY GOODNESS THEY TELL YOU the entire Movie Plot...TWISTS and all.
So if you have not seen it. Just go and rent it. DO NOT look it up online. It will just kill it.
Now there was another movie, that I really enjoyed but I for the life of me I cannot remember the name. It had a couple of lines which particularly stuck out in my mind
" The best trick the Devil ever played was to convince the world that he didn't exist" and
"Who is Kaiser Sosay"???
What movie was this??
Well my friends were bugging me for years to see it, because they said "I" would enjoy it...AND They were correct.
Especially because It did NOT have a predictable ending for me.
Hmmm ...."Who is Kaiser Sosay"???
Actually I think one of the guys (Kevin Spacey?) in Glenngary Glenn Ross is in the movie I'm thinking of ...
Hi Duane!
For me, Glengarry Glen Ross (http://imdb.com/title/tt0104348/) is a bit of a "guilty pleasure"... I like the movie...!
However, it does show a "sleazy" side of sales... Without really showing the corresponding "good" side of it... The dialogue is pretty powerful stuff though!
If you want some riveting viewing, get or borrow the documentary "Salesman". Some people believe that "Salesman" was a big inspiration for "Glengarry Glen Ross".
"Salesman (http://imdb.com/title/tt0064921/)" is about door-to-door Bible salesmen in the late 1960s. The camera follows four salesmen as they sell these expensive Bibles to Catholic families in Boston and Miami.
You can really see the differences between those who sell, and those who don't.
The "main character" of the documentary is Paul, nicknamed "The Badger". His sales aren't doing too well nowadays (reminiscent of Jack Lemmon's character in "Glengarry Glen Ross").
But the guy to watch for as a good salesman I believe is James, nicknamed "The Rabbit". Why?
You can see the enthusiasm he has when he talks about these intricate, expensive Bibles, the craftsmanship that went into making them, and so on. He's a great illustration of what Zig Ziglar teaches, that sales is at its core "emotional transference". James is emotional about the product, and as a result, he makes sales.
Anyway, I highly recommend it. Although the documentary mainly focuses on Paul "The Badger", make sure you pay attention to James "The Rabbit"! And notice how the two are quite different - and have different levels of success in sales as a result!
Other interesting sales-related movies (from Gordon's earlier recommendations)...
Elmer Gantry (http://imdb.com/title/tt0053793/). Burt Lancaster, playing Elmer Gantry, is a master "salesman", and pretty charismatic to boot.
The Music Man (http://imdb.com/title/tt0056262/). Another great salesman played by Robert Preson, who's a traveling salesman, selling musical instruments. In the end (despite himself), he does good for the community - showing the positive power that sales can really have. If you don't believe that sales can do good, then watch this movie.
And on another note...
Another one of my favorite movies is The Sweet Smell of Success (http://imdb.com/title/tt0051036/). It's not really about sales - it's actually about the working relation between a publicity man and a columnist - so it's still relevant to business. People often like Glengarry Glen Ross for the dialogue, but I think the dialogue in The Sweet Smell of Success is the best I've ever heard in film! I find it riveting... :)
There are a whole bunch of other "sales-related" films I haven't seen yet... Any other recommendations?
- Dien
